The Avengers watch Iron man
by Farala
Summary: It started with a disc. That was it. A simple, round, donut-like piece of plastic, and this happened. Nobody knew what was going on, not even Toni... Although she seemed to be the star of the... whatever it was. Honestly, Steve was going to owe Fury another 10 dollars at this rate. Warnings: Fem!Tony, Stony pairing, nobody knows Toni is Iron Man other than Coulson and Fury. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1: It started with a disc

Chapter 1:

The Avengers team was having a particularly normal day.

Toni was in her workshop repairing her suit which has problems after the battle with Loki, not that the others knew that. Clint and Nat were watching TV- some bird show that Clint wanted to see, Bruce was in his 'candy land' workshop as Toni had described it, Thor was on Asgard trying to sort out left over business regarding the arrest of Loki and Steve was in the gym doing god knows what, trying to get Tony out of his head. He loved her. He knew that. But it was the fact that in all simpleness… She still seemed to completely hate him with her whole being. So now, he could nothing but wait for his feelings to fade… if they ever did.

At noon they'd all gone to the kitchen to eat lunch, minus Ton who wouldn't come out of her workshop. Toni was only going to come out of her 'precious' workshop willingly if four things happened:

1\. The apocalypse had come

2\. Pepper had gotten her favorite ice-cream cake

3\. Steve was ready to admit his undying love for her (not that he knew that)

Or

4\. The Sherlock hiatus was over

And since none of these things had happened, she wasn't coming out. End of story. But you know, Toni being Toni hadn't eaten and 24 hours and the team needed to desperately get her to eat something. Pepper had just come out of a meeting looking like she was ready to kill death itself so… No help from her. So again, they were all huddled around the table for the fifth time that week, making different strategies to lure Toni out of her workshop.

They just didn't expect a small DVD case labeled 'Iron Man' to appear on the table.

Nat quickly ripped out the spare gun she carried on her, ignoring Clint's inquiry about 'where the hell do you keep all those guns?' and tried to glare it into submission while pointing the gun at the plastic casing. When it didn't immediately explode at their proximity she put away the gun. Instead of throwing it away, like a normal person would, she asked JARVIS to scan it so they could watch it.

As they settled on the couches, strategies of getting Toni from her workshop at the back of their minds, a low scratchy sound was heard from the TV before loud music came from the speaker, making everyone jump.

They all watched curiously as army jeeps drive across a desert landscape.

"What are they moving? A criminal," Bruce asked rhetorically.

 **The scene changed to the inside of the jeep where 3 army officials were sitting with a young woman holding a glass of alcohol.**

"Is…is that…Toni?" Bruce asks in disbelief.

Steve doesn't say anything, but under his skillfully blank mask was a lot of worry.

" **I feel like you're driving me to court martial."**

"That is definitely Toni."

 **The army people ignored her.**

" **This is crazy. What'd I do? I feel like you're gonna pull over and snuff me. What, you're not allowed to talk to me?" Toni turned to the young soldier sitting across from her. "Hey Forest?"**

" **We can talk miss."**

" **Oh I see, so it's personal."**

" **No, you intimidate them," replied the woman driving amusedly.**

" **Good God you're a woman. I have to admit, you are rocking that camouflage gear, finally good to see some women around here."**

" **I'm an airman. And this is my uniform, it is necessary so I wouldn't have a choice even if I looked like a potato in it. And my brother doesn't approve of this profession at all. Says' it's a man's job."**

" **Does he know the benefits of being in the army?"**

" **Probably not."**

" **Well then I guess you'll just have to shove a big, fat I-Told-You-So pie in his face when you see him next."**

 **The men in the vehicle laughed.**

" **You think this is funny do you?" the woman asked darkly.**

"Such a bad move there. If Tony hates anything, it's definitely sexism," Nat states.

 **Their laughter cut off abruptly.**

" **No it's ok, laugh! Anyone got any questions? You're kidding me with the hand up right?"**

Steve, Clint and Nat scowled as the young soldier to Toni's left lowered his hand.

" **Is it cool if I take a picture with you?"**

"Out of all the questions he could have asked… He asked to take a photo. Why does he even have a camera with him?"

" **Yes, it is very cool," Toni drawled, unsurprised.**

 **The young boy looked through his multiple pockets for a camera and handed it to the man in the front seat.**

" **All, right," Toni started, "I don't want to see this on your MySpace page. Please no gang signs. Actually throw it up, I'm kidding. Yeah peace. I love peace. I'd be out of the job with peace."**

Okay, now Steve was genuinely confused. Here was a woman who he had seen fall out of space for the safety and peace of the human race, basically saying she hated peace.

Seeing Steve's confusion, Nat helped him out. "Stark used to manufacture weapons."

His face of shock wasn't a pleasant one.

" **Just click it. Don't change any settings."**

The team jumped again as a loud explosion sound came from the speakers. They all cursed.

 **Toni's blank mask was broken for a second as she looked surprised at the sudden rough treatment of the jeep. "What's going on?" she shouted, voice cracking slightly. The sounds of the explosions were clearly making her ears ring.**

" **Contact left," the woman driving shouted, grabbing a gun. She stepped out of the Jeep and cried out in pain as she was hit.**

" **Jimmy stay with Stark," the man that supposed to take the picture hollered, kicked his door open. He ran to the front of the jeep and gave a guttural scream as an explosion went off, taking his life with it. Tony cringed as blood splattered the shattered windshield.**

" **Son of a Bitch," Jimmy cursed. Tony yelled at him to give her a gun but her voice is drowned out by the next round of bullets.**

" **Stay here" Jimmy yelled back, making a dash outside. Another round of bullets rain on the car, killing the 3rd soldier.**

 **Knowing that staying in the jeep would result in her early death, Toni turned and struggled to get her door open. She made a mad dash for a boulder and stumbled against it, pulling out her phone to call for help.**

The team look horrified as a bomb lands next to Tony.

 **Toni stiffened as she read the label that said 'Stark Industries' and scrambled away. But not fast enough.**

 **The bomb exploded and she was thrown through the air and forcefully into the ground, making her lungs lose their breath and her vision to fade black. She starts gasping for air, which the team can't find the reason for, when red starts to splatter her shirt.**

The team gasped as she clumsily ripped open her shirt to reveal a red, blood painted bullet-proof vest.

"She's bleeding… So much," Nat replied. The team was surprised to find her looking so distressed. She looked at them sharply, "don't look at me like that. Toni is like family to me."

Steve didn't know any of his had happened. None of this was in her file, which he had read rather extensively.

 **The screen turned white.**

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say Toni just died," Bruce joked. It only served to make the room tenser. They were all holding onto the fact that they all knew Toni was very much alive and in her workshop.

 **A burlap sack was ripped off the camera revealing a beaten and battered Toni.**

The team gasped at what they see. They have never seen Toni in any other condition other than her clean pristine work self, or her greased up, workshop self.

 **Toni's eyes were glazed over as she looked at the camera. Her head rolled around on her neck like a bowling ball, showing off all the cuts and bruises smothered in damp sand. The usual clean genius looked at the camera with dead, seemingly lifeless eyes while the men holding guns pointed them to Toni's head threateningly. The camera zooms out bringing in to view Toni's bloody, bandaged chest. Her breasts were barely covered and the men were staring at her lustfully.**

"Oh my god," Steve and Bruce whisper. Nat tried to look indifferent, not liking the feeling of helplessness, and Clint… Clint wasn't particularly close to the genius but it wasn't nice to see her like this. They all snapped out of their thoughts as theme song music starts and the screen changes with the words 'Iron man' on it.

"Why is Toni in Afghanistan? Or in a movie called Iron Man?" Steve asked, though that was only the beginning of is questions.

"Like I said, Tony was a weapons manufacturer before. She was obviously demonstrating something," Nat replied distastefully, ignoring the second question as she didn't have an answer.

"The real question is,' Clint gave a dramatic pause as the team gave him their full attention, "Why does Toni get her own theme music?"

That started a flurry of chuckles from the rest of the group.

Bruce however, being the awesome genius that he is, had inkling that Tony and Iron 'Man' had a lot more in common than any of them realized. He did not voice his opinion to the group, knowing it was a very wild accusation.

A silence feel over the group as they contemplated what this could all mean.

Whatever they were expecting to be on the disc, it definitely wasn't this.


	2. Chapter 2: Flashback

Chapter 2: The Flashback

" **Visionary. Genius. American Patriot. Even from an early age, the daughter of legendary weapons developer, Howard Stark, quickly stole the spotlight with her brilliant and unique mind. At age 4 she built her first circuit board, at age 6, her first engine."**

The team looked at the TV in shock. They had known Tony was smart, but not this smart.

" **At age 17, she graduated Summa Cum Laude from MIT. Then, the passing of a titan."**

Steve felt a wave of sadness wash over him as the news that Howard died in a car crash came to him.

" **Howard Starks lifelong friend and ally, Obadiah Stane steps in to fill the gap left by the legendary founder, until at age 21, the prodigal daughter returns and is appointed the new CEO of Stark Industries."**

The team frowned as one. Who was this Obadiah Stane that he movie spoke of? Nat knew who he was from her undercover work at Stark Industries as Natalie, but she hadn't realized he had this much power.

" **With the keys to the kingdom, Tony ushers in a new era for her father's legacy, creating smarter weapons, advanced robotics, satellite targeting. Today, Tony Stark has changed the face of the weapons industry by ensuring freedom and protecting America and her interests around the globe."**

The team looked dumbfounded as the camera spiraled out to show lots of people clapping at a man that stood on the podium talking to the crowd.

" **As a liaison to Stark Industries, I've had the unique privilege of serving with a real patriot. She is my friend and she is my great mentor. Ladies and Gentleman, it is my great honor to present this year's Apogee Award to Miss Toni Stark…Toni?"**

'Where is she?' Steve thought as the man looked around and glanced at Obadiah who shook his head before rising and walking forward to accept the award instead.

" **Thank you Colonel."**

" **Thanks for the save," the man muttered to Obadiah who had taken the award and was inspecting it.**

" **This is beautiful, thank you. Thank you all very much. This is wonderful," Obadiah states, nodding to the camera and looking to the crowd.**

" **Well I'm not Toni but if I were, I would tell you all how honored I feel and what a joy it is to receive this very prestigious award…Toni, you know, the best thing is also the worst thing, she's always working."**

The team nodded. They all knew that.

 **The scene changed on the TV to Tony in Vegas, throwing dice onto a table, smirking as she won chips.**

" **Work it! Come on!" she shouted, throwing the dice on the table again.**

" **You are unbelievable," the man from before said in a disbelieving tone.**

" **Oh no, did they rope you into this?"**

" **Nobody roped me into anything," he growled out.**

" **I'm so sorry," Toni apologized half-heartedly.**

" **But they did tell me that if I presented you with an award, you'd be deeply honored."**

" **Of course I'd be deeply honored. And it's you, it's great," she replied, looking over to the woman next to her right that had a complicated, but lovely hairstyle.**

" **Hey…Yeah you…How'd you get your hair like that?"**

The team laughed. This was a common occurrence. Tony was always asking Nat if her hair color was fake or not, and if it was, how could she get it done. Toni wasn't very fond of her own hair and its unruliness.

 **She turned her attention back to the man.**

" **So, when do we do it?"**

" **It's right here. Here you go," glared the man. Toni started weighing the trophy in her hand.**

" **There it is. That was easy…I'm so sorry," she apologized, not sounding sorry at all.**

" **Yeah, it's okay," the man sighed.**

" **Wow would you look at that? That's something else. I don't have one of these floating around at home," she smirks, handing the trophy to her left carelessly, and then leaning over to collect her recently won chips.**

 **Toni turned to the woman on her right.**

" **Hey, your hair has to be good luck with all the attention you're getting. Give me a little something-something." She turned to the glaring man.**

" **Okay, you too."**

" **I don't blow on a woman's dice," he growled, slapping her hand away with enough force that the dice are knocked out of her hand and onto the table.**

" **There it is! Lieutenant Colonel Rhodes rolls! And…Two, crap. Line away."**

" **That's what happens," Rhodes muttered, looking away. Toni rolled her shoulder as her chips were taken away.**

" **Worse things have happened. I think we're going to be fine."**

 **The scene changed and they're walking side-by-side out of the building.**

" **Color me up William," Toni snapped to the man on her left.**

" **This is where I exit," Rhodes muttered.**

" **Alright."**

" **Tomorrow, don't be late!"**

" **Yeah, you can count on it."**

" **I'm serious!"**

 **Toni mock waves, "I know, I know," before walking toward her car, bodyguards either side of her.**

" **Render unto Caesar. That which is Caesars. There you go," Tony said fluently, tossing her award to a man dressed in armor.**

" **Ms. Stark, excuse me Ms. Stark!"**

 **A bodyguard grabs a well-dressed young man by the arm.**

" **Chris Everheart, Vanity Fair Magazine. Can I ask you some questions?"**

 **Tony briefly looks at her driver. "He's hot," he whispers.**

 **Tony spun around to look at Chris.**

" **Yeah, okay let's go."**

"She only answers question if they're hot?" Clint asked incredulously while Steve has a jealous rage going on inside him.

" **You've been called the 'Da Vinci' of our time. What do you say to that?"**

" **Absolutely ridiculous, I don't paint."**

The team chuckled. That was definitely a Toni answer.

" **And what do you say to your other name? "The Mistress of Death?"**

The team sucked in a breath. They hadn't known about that.

" **That's not bad. Let me guess. Berkeley?" Tony asks amused.**

" **Brown actually," he replies dryly.**

" **Well Mr. Brown. It's an imperfect world but it's the only one we've got. I guarantee you, the day weapons are no longer needed to keep the peace I'll start making bricks and beams for baby hospitals."**

" **Rehearse that much?"**

" **Every night in front of the mirror before bedtime."**

" **I'd like to see that firsthand."**

" **I'm sure you would," Tony deadpans.**

" **All I want is a serious answer."**

" **Okay here's serious. My father had a philosophy, 'Peace means having a bigger stick than the other guy."**

" **That's a great line."**

" **My father helped defeat the Nazis. He worked on the Manhattan project. A lot of people, including the professors at Brown, would call that a hero."**

" **And a lot of people would call that war profiteering."**

Everyone winced as a brief flash of hurt got past Toni's mask. That comment must have really hurt her.

" **Tell me, do you plan to report on all the millions we've saved by advancing medical technology, or kept from starvation without intellect-crops? All those breakthroughs, military funding?"**

" **You ever lose an hour of sleep in your life?"**

" **I'd be prepared to lose a few with you."**

The team 'ew'ed and covered their eyes for the next scene where Tony and Chris fell onto the bed kissing.

Steve felt sick; it wasn't nice to see the object of your affections falling into bed with another man.

"Tony, we didn't need to see that." Bruce says to no-one in particular.

"Tony was a play-girl Bruce," Nat replied factually.

Everyone on the team groaned while Steve and Bruce looked a little green.

This was going to be a long movie.


	3. Chapter 3: The Cave Part 1

Chapter 3: The Cave Part 1

 **Chris Everheart as it seemed, was a heavy sleeper. Lying on the bed, he gasped as JARVIS woke him up with several polite, "Good morning sir, it is 7am"**

 **He pulled the sheets over himself as the curtains opened.**

" **The weather in Malibu is 72 degrees with scattered clouds. The surf conditions are fair with waist-to-shoulder high lines. High tide will be at 10:52am."**

 **The camera rolls out showing a clear, spectacular** view **from the window.**

The team stared in awe at the sheer beauty of the view. Their view from the Tower was excellent but this… This took it to a whole new level.

"When did Tony get that?" Clint asked, "I mean, why we are here, when we could be there?"

The team turned their attention back to the TV as Chris made his way around the mansion calling for Toni.

" **Toni? Hey, Toni!" Chris walked to a wall with a keypad and experimentally pressing it. Flashing lights started, causing Chris to jump.**

" **You are not authorized to access this area," JARVIS chimed in.**

" **Jesus," Chris cursed under his breath, breathing heavily from surprise and backing away from the panel.**

" **That's JARVIS, he runs the house." Pepper chose that time to walk in, holding a dry-cleaning bag and wearing a frosty expression.**

 **Chris turned around looking even more surprised, but his expression turned sultry when he caught sight of her. He walked toward her with a sly grin on his face, chewing a fingernail.**

" **You must be the famous Pepper Potts. I must say, you look a lot better in person."**

 **Pepper put on a disgusted expression, "Ms. Stark would have your head if she heard you speaking to me like that. I am her assistant."**

" **Oh yes, Toni still got you picking up dry-cleaning?"**

" **I do anything and everything Ms. Stark requests, including occasionally… taking out the trash. Will that be all?**

The team was honestly surprised. The times they had seen Pepper, she had never given any insults to any of her associates or Toni's; however, here she was delivering an ego crushing insult that would take multiple bed partners for him to overcome.

 **The scene changed to Toni working on an engine in her workshop, covered in grease and oil with her hair in a mess.**

Steve thought she looked absolutely gorgeous.

" **Give me an exploded view," she muttered to JARVIS.**

" **The compression in cylinder three appears to be low," he replied.**

" **Log that," she replied, continuing to work on the machinery.**

The team watch mesmerized. Tony had never allowed any of them, with the exception of Pepper and Bruce, to enter her workshop. They just didn't know why, although they had a feeling they'd be finding out fairly soon.

 **Toni didn't notice as Pepper walked down the steps, pressed a few buttons on the keypad and walked in, all while talking on the phone… until she turns her music off.**

" **I'm going to try again right now," she muttered into the mobile.**

" **Please don't turn off my music," Tony whined.**

" **I'll keep you posted." Pepper clicked her phone shut and walked over to stand behind Tony. "You are supposed to be half way around the world by now," she scolded.**

" **How'd he take it?"**

" **Like a champ."**

" **Why are you trying to hustle me out of here?"**

" **Your flight was scheduled to leave an hour and a half ago."**

"I can see why we are lucky to get paperwork about the team back from her on time then," Steve jokes.

Clint groans in complete exasperation, "Steve, stop pretending, we all know you love Toni." Steve went bright red.

'What he doesn't know is that the feelings are returned,' Bruce thought to himself, thinking of all the times when Toni visited him in his lab and went on a rampage about how awesome Steve's face was.

"It's kind of hard to miss when you stare at her during team meetings. I think Iron Man is starting to get jealous…"

"Shut up," Steve growled out between clenched teeth.

"You know, it wouldn't be the end of the world if you and Toni got together," Nat responded.

Steve, looking like a tomato, tried to deny an accusations coming his way. He didn't need to feel more pain from knowing that his feelings were not reciprocated.

" **That's funny, I thought with it being my plane and all that it would just wait for me to get there.**

" **Tony, I need to speak to you about a few things before I get you out the door."**

" **Doesn't it kind of defeat the purpose of having your own plane if it departs before you arrive?"**

"Toni has a point there," Nat muttered, trying not to grimace at the menacing glare Pepper was giving Tony.

" **Larry called; he's got another buyer for the Jackson Polluck in the wings. Do you want it? Yes or no?"**

" **Is it a good representation of his spring period?"**

" **No. The spring was actually the neighborhoods in East Hampton, where he lived and worked, not 'spring' like he season."**

" **So?"**

" **I think it's a fair example. I think it's incredibly overpriced."**

" **I need it," Toni stated, cleaning her hands on a nearby rag, "Buy it. Store it."**

" **Okay, the MIT commencement speech-"**

" **Is in June. Please, don't harangue me about stuff that's way down."**

The team rolled their eyes, she had said that three days before that an event.

" **They're haranguing me, so I'm going to say yes," Pepper told Toni.**

" **Deflect it and absorb it. Don't transmit is back to me."**

" **I need you to sign this before you get on the plane."**

" **What are you trying to get rid of me for? Have you actually got plans on your birthday this year? I don't get to take you shopping this year?"**

" **As a matter of fact I do and no, you don't."**

" **Okay," Toni sighed but looked up at Pepper from under her lashes, "Did you like the dress I got you?"**

" **Yes I do. Thank you."**

" **Maybe you'll get yourself a man and stop babysitting me," Toni mumbled under her breath.**

" **I heard that. And stop mumbling, it is unbecoming of a CEO."**

" **You look after me way too much."**

 **Pepper sighed, "Will that be all Ms. Stark?"**

" **That will be all Miss Potts."**

The sound of an Audi R8 pulling across the screen cut through the speakers, shocking everyone with the loudness.

 **As the Audi came to a screeching halt, a black car came up beside it.**

 **Toni got out of the car and smirked at the other driver.**

" **You're good. I thought I lost you back there."**

" **You did Miss. I had to cut across Mulholland."**

 **Toni nodded, muttering, "I got you, I got you."**

 **Toni walked to the lone plane on the runway, rolling her eyes at Rhodey, who was standing on top of the plane looking at Tony disappointedly.**

" **What? What's wrong with you? What?" Tony questioned.**

" **Three hours."**

" **I got caught doing a piece for Vanity Fair."**

" **For three hours you got me standing here."**

 **Toni rolled her eyes again and walked past him into the plane while saying, "Waiting on** _ **you**_ **now. Let's** _ **go**_ **. Come on."**

 **The scene changed to Rhodey reading something and Toni who was swiveling on her chair.**

" **What are you reading Platypus?"**

Clint almost peed himself at that comment.

" **Nothing," Rhodey replied shortly.**

" **Come on, sour patch. Don't be mad."**

" **I told you. I'm not mad. I'm indifferent."**

" **I said I was sorry."**

" **Good morning Miss Stark," a flight attendant walked in saying.**

" **Hi. I told him I was sorry but he…"**

" **Hot towel," the flight attendant asked.**

 **Rhodey sighed as Toni took the towel. "You don't respect yourself, so I know you don't respect me."**

" **I respect you!" Toni cried.**

" **I'm just your babysitter. So when you need your diaper changed…thank you… Let me know and I'll get you a bottle okay?"**

 **The scene changed to Toni walking down the plane stairs.**

" **General," she greeted.**

" **Welcome Miss Stark. We look forward to your weapons demonstration."**

" **Thanks."**

 **The scene swung into view showing Toni standing on top of a rock, overlooking a valley.**

" **Is it better to be feared or respected?" she asked rhetorically, "I say, is it too much to ask for both? With that in mind, I humbly present to you the crown jewel of Stark Industries Freedom line. It's the first missile mission system to incorporate our repulser technology."**

Bruce unconsciously mover forward in thought. Didn't the Iron Man suit have repulsers?

" **They say the best weapon is one you never have to fire. I respectfully disagree. I prefer the weapon you only have to fire once. That's how Dad did it. That's how America does it, and it's worked out pretty well so far. Find an excuse to let one of these off the chain, and I personally guarantee you, the bad guys won't even want to come out of their caves."**

" **For your consideration. The Jericho."**

"Every time a reporter mentions that missile, Tony gets depressed and doesn't come out of her lab for days. Do you think this has something to do with it?" Bruce asked.

"It's the only logical explanation for it," Nat replied, weighing the possibilities.

The team watched as a missile was blasted off into the valley before dethatching itself into a dozen bombs that then blew up the side of the mountain.

 **Toni walked through the soldiers to a silver case which she opened to reveal drinks. She held it up in an invisible toast, "To Peace!"**

 **She got out her phone and flipped it showing a picture of Obadiah.**

" **Toni."**

" **Obie! What are you doing up?"**

" **I couldn't sleep till I found out how it went. How'd it go?"**

" **It went great. Looks like it's going be an early Christmas."**

" **Hey! Way to go my girl! I'll see you tomorrow. Yeah?"**

" **Why aren't you wearing those pyjamas I got you?"**

' **Obie' rolled his eyes as Toni smirked.**

" **Goodnight Toni."**

 **Toni walked over to a vehicle before sitting in it and rolling the window down.**

" **Hey Toni," Rhodey called, nodding his head in acknowledgment to other soldiers.**

" **I'm sorry. This is the 'Fun-vee'. The Hum-Drum-Vee is back there."**

 **Rhodey nodded, "Nice job. I'll see you back at the base."**

 **Toni nodded, sipping her drink.**

"That's the car isn't it," Steve asked quietly. Nat nodded, wanting to focus on what was happening next instead of the needless chatter.

 **The scene changed to the jeeps exploding.**

The team has to cover their ears as a blood curdling scream cuts through the speakers.

They all looked on in horror as Toni lied on a bench, screaming in agony, probably wishing she were dead. Her chest was so red from blood that it was probably stained into her skin. Steve doesn't even notice that her breasts are in full view. People are poking around in her chest, adjusting the circular, metal thing haphazardly put into her chest. Someone put a cloth on her face to stop her screaming. Toni eventually stilled, breathing raggedly, as the screen turned black.

"What were they doing?" Steve whispered, watching his love being tortured.

"It looks like an electromagnet of some sort, judging by the materials used and the way it is built," Bruce answered reluctantly.

Steve felt broken. It was close to the agony he felt when he knew he wasn't going to make it back to Peggy while flying over the ice. He couldn't do anything about what was happening and probably couldn't ask Toni about this later, knowing it was not in her file.

They all sighed. They were now officially watching this movie against their will.


	4. Chapter 4: The Cave Part 2

Chapter 4: The Cave Part 2

As the movie had been playing, Toni had finished repairs on her suit and knew that if she didn't eat soon someone was going to come and look for her and she _was_ hungry…so she was going to eat… voluntarily.

"Put the suit away and lockup for me, thanks JARVIS."

"You are welcome Miss Stark."

She walked into the kitchen and made herself a sandwich. Ham, cheese, mayo, lettuce and tomato all squashed together between two pieces of white bread. Not noticing that the Team had been watching a movie or that it had been paused, she sat down next to Steve. She then felt stares on her from all around and looked up.

"What?" she asked irritated.

Bruce, the ever so calm one, started first, "Toni, show us the thing in your chest." It wasn't a question.

Naturally, she started spluttering… almost immediately.

"Pfft…I don't….Why would you think…? That's a bit forward don't you think."

Bruce was blushing but pushed her. They needed answers.

"Look Toni, I don't know what it is, but we know you have _something_ in your chest."

"We _know_ you have something there Toni," Clint stated bluntly.

"Hate to break it to you guys, but they're called boobs," Toni deadpanned.

Wanting to just rip off the Band-Aid, Bruce jerked his head toward the screen which showed Toni lying on a bench with bandages around her chest and a blood spot in the middle.

Toni's cocky mask completely slipped as she stared in complete shock at the screen, trying to comprehend how a) there was any footage of this, and b) why the team watching this. She whipped her head around to glare at Bruce, "Where the hell did you get this?" she snarled.

Nat, who had been sitting between Bruce and Clint on the three seated couch, reached over and put a comforting hand on her knee, "It appeared on the kitchen table, we didn't know it was this."

Toni leaned back roughly, brushing shoulders with Steve, causing Steve to blush and try to discreetly move away from her closeness.

"Do we have permission to continue watching?" Clint asked.

Toni, very hesitantly, nodded her head.

"Can you show us what is in your chest then?" Bruce asked.

Toni took off the MIT sweater she was wearing, showing a glowing blue circle in the middle of her chest. It looked completely different to the one on the screen, which cause the questions.

"What is that?" Bruce asked slowly, blushing as he realized he was staring between her breasts.

"What does it do?" Clint asked.

"Guys, leave her be, she obviously doesn't want to be questioned at the moment," Nat reasoned.

"Yinsen," she choked out the name, "will explain."

 **Tony woke up with a gasp, blinking against the harsh light that invaded her eyes. She coughed and swatted the air with her hand to bat away an invisible bug, before her fingers brushed a tube that she began pulling out. She pulled a disgusted face as it slid out her nose, gagging before the whole thing came out. She turned her head to look at a mug that was sitting on the tale beside her before lifting her hand to grab it. She was unsuccessful as it fell to the ground with a 'clang'.**

Toni closed her eyes and let out a shuddering breath. That sandwich was a bad idea.

"Are, you ok Toni?" Bruce asked.

Toni was quick to nod her head yes, but changed her mind when she felt her sickness coming back.

"I didn't know what had happened," she whispered, her voice trembling, "I was completely clueless."

Steve could literally feel the queasiness rolling off her in waves but knew he couldn't do much about it (he knew she hated pity. They'd all looked at her with pity when they walked into the conference room, after the battle of New York where Iron Man almost died, and she looked so distressed and sweaty. She'd go berserk.) So all Steve could do was put a comforting arm around her shoulders while she breathed through her nose.

"You can keep watching, just don't ask me questions yet" she said shortly, but loud enough so that everyone could hear.

They turned back to the TV.

 **Tony coughed as the scene changed to a man that was shaving in front of a mirror. Tony spotted him and tried to sit up, wincing as her chest is tugged against something. She looked back and found wires attached to her chest.**

" **I wouldn't do that if I were you," the man stated.**

"Even Anderson could have deduced that," Toni muttered out. Steve still had no idea what she was talking about when she said these things.

 **Tony flinched and turned around to look at the wires connected to her chest. She then whipped her head to the car battery sitting on the table above her 'innocently.' Her hands frantically traced the wires back to under her shirt where she ripped and tore to get the bandages off. Letting out a shuddering breath, her hands traced the round, corroded piece of metal imbedded into her chest, then reality caught up with her and she recoiled as if being shot at with a horrified look on her face.**

"They connected you… to a car battery?" Bruce asked Toni with a murderous glint in his eye.

"They had to hook me up to something or I'd be dead before I could-"she cut herself before she let her secret get out.

"Before you could what?" Clint asked.

"Nothing," she answered quickly, bravely looking at the TV as if she wanted to watch the rest of it. The team would have none of it though.

"Toni, tell us," Nat urged.

Toni let out a breath and sagged against Steve. "If this movie is what I think it is, and I'm always right, the movie will tell you."

The team turned back to the TV, satisfied with the answer.

 **The scene changed to show the man cooking a disgusting brown mush over a fire, whistling softly. Tony sat nearby on the bed she woke up on, staring at the fire.**

" **What the hell did you do to me?" she asked voice raw from the screaming.**

 **The man looked over toward Toni as she spoke and smiled.**

" **What I did? What I did was save your life," he spoke, before going back to stirring the 'food,' "I removed all the shrapnel I could, but there is a lot left and it's headed into your left atrium septum."**

"That's how it happened," Bruce muttered to himself.

"Yeah, it wasn't very nice. It's still there too," Toni spoke up, interrupting Bruce's train of thought.

" **Here, you want to see?" The man asked, holding a small jar up, "I have a souvenir. Take a look."**

 **He tossed the jar to Toni who held it up to look at the small shark tooth like pieces and traces of spice.**

" **I've seen many wounds like that in my village. We call them the walking dead, because it takes about a week for the barbs to reach the vital organs."**

 **Toni looked up at the man with a broken, yet dull expression, "What is this?"**

 **The man's gaze softened a little at the smallness of Toni's voice and changed the route of his gaze to the car battery then back to Toni, "That is an electromagnet, hooked up to a car battery and it's keeping the shrapnel from entering you heart."**

 **Toni looked down at it before zipping up her jacket, hiding the piece of metal from sight. Her eyes were almost immediately led to the camera that was in the corner of the cave.**

 **The man noticed the direction of her gaze and looked back to her before saying, "That's right. Smile," and went back to his cooking.**

 **There was an awkward silence for a few minutes before the man broke it, "We met once you know, at a technical conference in Bern."**

" **I don't remember," Toni replied, still staring at the fire.**

" **No, you wouldn't. If I had been that drunk, I wouldn't have been able to stand, let alone give a lecture in integrated circuits."**

Steve frowned. It was a known subject that he didn't like Toni's level of alcohol intake.

" **Where are we?" Toni asked.**

 **Before the man can answer, the door shook and there was shouting of different languages on the other side. This apparently was a cause for alarm, as the man stood up quickly and helping Toni grabbed the battery, before standing up, "Come on, and stand up. Stand up! Do as I do. Come on, put your hands up."**

 **The door came crashing open hitting the walls of the cave either side, and men came bursting in holding guns.**

" **Those are my weapons. How did they get my weapons?" Tony muttered to herself.**

 **The man gave her a glare before hissing under his breath, "Do you understand? Do as I do."**

 **A man with a black beard and white robes walked toward the front to stand before Toni and the other prisoner. He held his arms up in a greeting, making wild hand gestures and spoke in a different language, then gestured to Toni's other cell mate to translate.**

" **He says 'Welcome Toni Stark, the most famous mass murder in the history of America.' He is honored," Tony eyed the man wearily, "He wants you to build the missile….Sorry, the Jericho Missile that you demonstrated, this one." The man showed a picture of the missile to Tony.**

 **Toni looked up into the man's eyes…**

Toni gave a dry sob, only she knew what was going to happen next.

" **I refuse."**

"No!" Nat yelled out, before she could stop herself. She was cut off though, as a horrible gagging sound came through the surround sound speakers.

Steve's arm unconsciously tightened around Toni, who was wincing along with the sharp sounds from the TV. He glared at the television with so much hate that everyone, minus Toni who was looking at the carpeted floor, expected it to spontaneously burst into flames.

 **Toni's head was forced out of the water cursing, coughing and gagging. Before she could recover from the first round, the men forced her head under the water again, this time water getting to her chest, making the electromagnet zap her a few times. Her back arched in pain and she thrashed her head to the side to get air but her attempts were futile.**

 **The scene changed to Toni walking outside the cave, carrying her car battery. Her eyes were glazed over from pain and not taking in her surroundings properly. Her legs were shaking and she was still fighting to catch her breath. The camera angle changed to show the many crates, camouflaged by green and brown mesh.**

 **Her 'cave mate' turned to her and translated the man, "He wants to know what you think."**

" **I think you've got a lot of my weapons."**

" **He says they have everything you need to build the Jericho missile…He wants you to make a list or materials. He says for you to start working immediately, and when you're done, he'll set you free."**

 **Toni turned to the bearded man who was looking at her expectedly, put a painfully obvious fake smile on her face and clasped hands with him, "No he won't."**

 **He cave mat answered, albeit hesitantly, "No… he won't."**

 **The changed to them back in the cave again; it appeared that the man was giving Toni a pep talk.**

" **I'm sure they're looking for you Stark. But they'll never find you in these mountains."**

Toni laughed bitterly, "They certainly didn't find me. I found them!"

" **Look at what you just saw. That was your legacy Stark! Your life's work is in the hands of those murderers. Is that how you want to go out? Is this the last act of defiance of the great Toni Stark?"**

 **Toni didn't make a move, "Why should I do anything? They're just going to kill us."**

Steve recoiled at the monotone, emotionless voice she used.

 **She laughed bitterly, which turned into a coughing fit, "And if they don't…I'll probably be dead by the end of the week." She glared at the car battery.**

 **The man gave her a grim smile, "Well then, this is a very important week for you isn't it."**


	5. Chapter 5: The Escape

Chapter 5: The Escape.

"You're building it?" Clint asked incredulously, looking at Toni with narrowed eyes.

"Of course not, Legolas," Toni replied with a wave of her hand, "I thought you'd have more faith in me."

" **If this is going to be my workstation, I want it well lit. I want these up. I need welding gear. I don't care if it's acetylene or propane. I need a soldering station. I need helmets. I'm going to need goggles. I would like a smelting cup; I need two sets of precision tools. And for Christ sakes you captured a girl, I get my period, I'm going to need stuff for that," Toni listed off to her cave mate, who translated it to the other men.**

Steve promptly turned into a beetroot at that comment.

"Toni…when they…tortured you…did they rape you? At all…" Bruce asked timidly.

Toni went quiet and Steve felt a ball of dread build in the pit of his stomach.

"I'm sure if they were allowed to, they would have. But they were under strict orders not to touch me and they were always under supervision when around me," she answered after a pause.

The team sighed in relief.

 **The scene changed to Toni talking to the man in her cave while working.**

" **How many languages do you speak?" Toni asked the man.**

" **A lot, but apparently not enough for this place, they speak Arabic, Urdu, Dari, Pashto, Mongolian, Farsi and Russian."**

 **Toni got the innards out of a missile and examined them.**

" **Who are these people?"**

" **They…Are your loyal customers miss. They call themselves the 'Ten Rings'."**

 **Toni moved onto another missile, screwed the nose off then hit it with her hand until it came off.**

" **You know," the man started, "We might be more productive if you include me in the planning process."**

 **Toni did nothing but make a small 'uh-huh' noise.**

 **She got out the wires inside and brought them to a table where she continued to tinker with it.**

" **OK, we don't need this," she muttered as she threw all but a small rectangle over her shoulder.**

" **What is that?" the man muttered.**

 **Toni lifted up the metal for him to see, "This is Palladium 0.15 grams. We're going to need at least 1.6 so why don't you go break down the other eleven?"**

 **The scene changed to the terrorists watching the screen with a few in the background playing cards.**

 **The scene changed back to Toni, who was kneading something in a bowl. It then changed to metal tongs grabbing a small cup out of a blazing fire, and then carefully bringing them around to a table.**

" **Careful, we only get one shot at this," she murmured, unconsciously holding her hands out and eyeing the cup.**

" **Relax, I have steady hands. Why do you think you're still alive?"**

 **Tony thumped her car battery on the table before the man came over with the cup, pouring the liquid into the mound.**

" **What do I call you?" Toni murmured, eyes steadily watching the pouring process.**

" **My name is Yinsen," he said back.**

" **Nice to meet you,"**

" **Nice to meet you too,"**

The air around the team became tense. Finally, Clint murmured a small 'oh'.

"You guys don't have to be so careful! I treasure the time I had with Yinsen, but still, don't talk about it too often. But, technically, most of the population here owes him their life. If he hadn't removed that shrapnel I…" Toni stopped herself short. 'Why is it so hard to keep my secret from them?' she thought 'I've never had trouble before. Even though they're going find out I want to stretch it out it… I think. I hope they're not mad; ugh, my nerves are all over the place, what with the movie, the team's reactions, and Steve's muscled, toned chest-…Bad thoughts Bad thoughts. Stop blushing!'

The team shared a look at her blush and her stopped sentence.

 **Toni got a small circle of the solidified liquid out of the mold and examined it, before carefully putting it in a small circular container.**

 **The scene changed to Toni soldering a circle of metal and wires before it panned out to show more parts elevated into the air by metal. It changed again to show Toni controlling the lighting in the cave to make the circle glow.**

 **She pursed her lips and looked at it in thought, before Yinsen interrupted them.**

 **He crouched down to look at it eye level before saying, "That…doesn't look like a Jericho missile."**

" **That's because it's a miniaturized Arc Reactor." Toni replies, bitterness in her tone.**

"You…Built that in a cave," Toni nodded, "in Afghanistan?" Bruce asked.

"Yeah, would've been easier in my lab, but meh!"

'If Toni has an arc reactor in her chest… but we were told that only Iron Man is in possession of an Arc Reactor,' Bruce contemplated.

" **I got a big one powering my factory at home. It should keep the shrapnel out of my heart."**

" **But what could it generate?" Yinsen asked curiously.**

" **If my math is right, and it always is," she continued holding the Arc Reactor up to see at eyes level, "three gigajoules per second."**

" **That could generate your heart for 50 lifetimes," Yinsen whispered in awe.**

" **Yeah… or something big for 15 minutes."**

 **Toni walked to a different table that held pieces of white, opaque paper.**

" **This is our ticket out of here," she muttered, rearranging the paper.**

" **What is it?" Yinsen asked confused.**

" **Flatten them out and look."**

 **Yinsen followed her instructions and his eyes widened. The see through papers were blueprints for a big metal suit.**

"Holy shit…" Clint muttered.

"I don't get it. What did Toni do?" Steve asked.

"She built the Iron Man suit in a cave," Bruce answered in awe.

"You know it," Toni answered smugly, feeling good about people finally knowing how smart she really was.

 **The scene changed to show Yinsen changing Toni's Reactor through the security camera TV. The light from the Reactor was just a big blue blob, but it wasn't hard to figure out what it was.**

 **The screen cleared from the grainy look to show Yinsen and Tony playing a board game.**

" **Good roll, good roll," Yinsen murmured.**

" **You still haven't told me where you're from," Tony reminded him.**

" **I'm from a small town in Gulmira. It's actually a nice place."**

" **Got a family?" Toni muttered as she took her turn.**

" **Yes, and I will see them when I leave here. And you Stark?"**

 **Toni looked uncomfortable for a moment, but answered anyway.**

" **No."**

" **No?" Yinsen asked incredulously, "So, you're a woman who has everything, yet nothing at all."**

 **Toni and Yinsen had moved off to do their own things in the next scene. Toni, who was welding, lifted her helmet and looked questionably at the group of foreign men who had walked into their cave.**

" **Relax," the leader stated.**

 **Toni didn't.**

" **The bow and arrow once was the pinnacle of weapons technology. It allowed the great Genghis Khan to rule from the Pacific to the Ukraine. An empire twice the size of Alexander the Great and four times the size of the Roman Empire…But today, whoever holds the latest Stark Weapons rules these lands. Soon it will be my turn."**

 **He turned and spoke to the other men in a foreign language that Toni didn't understand. She could only watch, growing more distressed, as they shoved Yinsen to his knees, turned his head sideways and picked up a hot coal with the tongs.**

" **What does he want?!" she asked hurriedly.**

" **What does he want? A delivery date?" she asked again. She tried to take a step toward them, but the men shouted at her, swiping with their hands and pointing their guns at her.**

" **I need him… Good assistant," Toni told them quickly before the coal could get to his mouth.**

 **The man let Yinsen go, reluctantly, and Tony looked at him worriedly when he slumped to the ground.**

 **Toni jerked when the man spoke again; she had forgotten he was there. "You have till tomorrow to assemble my missile."**

Clint frowned in thought at Toni. "How did you do it though? It took you like three weeks to make the Arc Reactor."

The only reaction he got was a smirk.

 **Tony was in a metal suit and Yinsen kept muttering directions to her.**

" **Okay, can you move?" he asked. Tony nodded.**

" **Okay, say it again."**

" **41 steps straight ahead. Then 16 steps, that's from the door, fork right, 33 steps, turn right," Toni responded. There was a banging on the door and shouting in a different language just as she'd finished.**

" **Say something! Say something back to them!" Toni demanded desperately.**

 **Yinsen stuttered. "H-He's...He's speaking Hungarian… I-I don't…"**

" **Then speak Hungarian," Toni seethed.**

"That wasn't nice Toni," Bruce sighed. Toni shrugged, keeping her façade up.

 **Yinsen shouted back. The man kept speaking in the different tongue and tried to open the door. The door exploded from the bomb Yinsen and Toni had set there and they were recoiled from the explosion and rendered unconscious.**

" **Let me finish this. Initialize the power sequence oka-"**

" **Now!"**

 **Toni nodded from inside the metal contraption.**

" **Function 11," she commanded, "Tell me when you see a progress bar. It should be up right now. Talk to me when you see it."**

" **I have it."**

" **Press control 1," Toni stated calmly, "Now, come over here and button me up."**

" **Okay alright." Yinsen's voice sounded shaky.**

" **Every other hex bolt," Toni reminded.**

" **They're coming!" Yinsen panicked.**

 **Toni stayed calm, "Nothing pretty, get it done… just get it done."**

"Something bad it going to happen," Nat muttered, Toni way already glaring at the other wall so fiercely everyone was surprised it hadn't burst in flames yet.

" **Make sure the checkpoints are clear before you follow me out okay?" Toni checked.**

 **Yinsen glances back at the laptop worriedly.**

" **We need more time," he muttered, "I'm going to go buy you some time!"**

 **He grabbed a gun and ran toward the door while Toni was looking frantic, stuck in the metal suit.**

" **Stick to the plan! Stick to the plan," Toni shrieked to him.**

 **The loading bar increased its progress quickly and Toni was released.**

 **The men walked into the dark, seemingly empty cave carefully. In a flash of blue Arc-Reactor light, the man was flown to the other side of the room and the other joined his mates on the ground. The camera zoomed out and shoed the silhouette of a great metal suit.**

 **Toni stepped out of the cave towards the back-up that had come to help. They all turned around and ran the other way screaming bloody murder and effectively showing Toni the way out.**

 **Toni came to a door where a man was attempting to get through from being locked out.**

'Bloody cowards,' Toni thought.

 **Toni showed no mercy, as they didn't her, and kept pushing toward the man and pushed down the door. The was a scream of pure agony as she stepped over the man, but Toni obviously paid no mind to it, or anything, other than getting Yinsen and getting out.**

 **Toni's arm got stuck in a wall as she swung it out. A white dressed man attempted to shoot her face plate, but the bullet rebounded and hit him in the head.**

"I-I…When the HELL did this happen?!" Clint asked hysterically.

"We both knew this has happened Clint. Why do you think I went undercover as Pepper's assistant?" Nat asked rhetorically.

 **Raza walked out from behind a sack of sand, pointing a missile at the spot Toni had appeared.**

" **Yinsen!" Toni yelled.**

" **Watch out!" he yelled back.**

 **Toni narrowly missed the missile that was sent her way. Tony shoots at Raza and rubble landed on him, giving Toni time to attend to Yinsen.**

 **Tony kneeled next to Yinsen who was laying on a pile of sandbags with blood running down his face.**

" **Come on…we've got to go…Move for me, come on. We got a plan, we're gonna stick to it."**

" **This always was the plan Stark," Yinsen wheezed.**

" **Come on, we're gonna see your family."**

" **My family is dead. I'm going to see them now Stark."**

 **Toni's lip quivered but she didn't let the tears fall.**

" **It's okay, I want this…I want this." He breathed softly.**

" **Thank you for saving me." Toni's voice cracked.**

" **Don't waste it. Don't waste your life," he tells her before going limp.**

 **Toni's face expressed her grief for a brief moment, before hardening into determination.**

 **She stood up and faced the door where the other terrorists are waiting. What they are waiting for and what they find were two wholly different things. Toni looked ready to laugh at the expressions on their faces as she walked out, but she was too determined to care.**

 **The group fights against their instincts to run, and fire at Tony. Tony didn't look fazed at all.**

" **My turn," she growled before all hell broke loose.**

 **She activated the flame throwers in her suit and sent it at them with no mercy. People screamed in fright as she walked forward, destroying everything in her path.**

 **100 feet from the entrance of the cave, a man hit a link in her armor sending her toward the ground. She struggled to get up, but managed. All around her is fire and destruction, but she just fiddled with a button on her arm before pressing it, sending her into the sky just as the explosion blew everything sky high.**

 **Halfway in the sky, her thrusters fail her and she plummets toward the earth.**

"Oh my God. That's going to kill you," Bruce yelped.

"You're right. This is actually the story of how I died. Your adviser is just a robot in a skin suit," Tony said sarcastically.

 **Toni slammed into the sand, sending a cloud of dust up in the air. When the sand cleared Toni was shown buried waist deep in the sand looking incredibly tired. She groans in annoyance before what actually happened comes to her and she smiles, pounding her metal covered fists into the sand.**

Steve frowned, he didn't know any of this had happened, yet he judged her, just as soon as he had met her. He was royally pissed at himself, thinking he had absolutely no chance with her now.

 **The scene changed to Toni walking across a sand dune with the valley behind her. She had her jacket on her head and was covered in a blanket of sweat.**

 **A helicopter came into view just as she made it to the top and she waved her arms like a madman trying to get its attention.**

" **Hey!" she shrieked. "Hey!"**

 **The helicopter landed and Rhodey came out looking relieved. He jogged to Toni, who was close to tears.**

" **How was the 'fun-vee'?" he asked sarcastically once he got to her.**

 **Toni chuckled weakly and Rhodey pulled her into a hug as she cried softly into his shoulder.**

" **Next time, you ride with me okay."**


	6. Chapter 6:Back Home and Conference Calls

Chapter 6: Back Home and Conference Calls.

" **Watch it, coming up here."**

" **Are you kidding me with this?" Toni said to the medical staff waiting next to the plane with a stretcher, "Get rid of them."**

 **Toni and Rhodey walked down the ramp to stand in front of Pepper. Rhodey nodded at her and walked away.**

" **Your eyes are red," Toni mocks with a knowing grin, "A few tears for your long lost boss?"**

" **Tears of joy, I hate job hunting." Pepper retorts sarcastically, sniffing occasionally.**

 **Toni suddenly sobers and turns toward the car waiting for them.**

" **Yeah, vacations over."**

 **They slid into the car and waited for Happy to address them. "Where to miss?"**

" **The hospit-"Pepper started to say before she was cut off.**

" **No." Toni interrupted.**

 **Pepper looked startled. "No? Toni, you have to go to the hospital."**

" **No is a complete answer."**

" **The doctor has to look at you," Pepper countered.**

" **I've been held in captive for three months."**

The team flinched.

" **There are two I want. I want to get an American cheeseburger and the other-"**

" **That's enough of that!"**

 **Toni sighed. "It's not what you think. I want you to call for a press conference now."**

" **Call for a press conference?" Pepper said in disbelief.**

" **Yeah," Toni answered, unfazed.**

"You really should have gone to the hospital Toni," Bruce scolded.

"Didn't need to," Toni said nonchalantly.

" **What on earth for?"**

" **Hogan, drive. Cheeseburger first."**

"I get you guys don't understand, but that cheeseburger was like our Shwarma."

"Oh… So every time you… got kidnapped… You got an American cheeseburger?" Clint asked uncertainly.

Toni face palmed at the Hawk Avenger. "No, how many times do you think I get kidnapped?" she huffed, "We always get Shwarma after you guys win battles, after I finish with the paperwork and press, and on Wednesday nights don't we." She got a nod from them all. "I always had cheeseburgers on Tuesdays with Pepper and we watched movies. That was a Tuesday. I'd just been held in captivity in a cave where I ate nothing but beans and soup. I wanted something normal. Was that too much to ask?!"

Clint flinched at the angry tone and opened his mouth to argue 'that wasn't what he'd meant' but a discreet shake of the head from Natasha stopped him. He knew Toni was unstable from the things rolling out at the moment and didn't need to fuel it. He answered with a simple no and Toni instantly had on a smug smile and turned back to the TV.

"JARVIS… I'm leaving it up to you to pause the movie now…" Toni commanded.

"Yes ma'am."

 **As Toni's car stopped at the conference, Obadiah ran to the car to open her door.**

" **Wow! Look at this! Toni! We were going to meet at the hospital!" He exclaimed as they hug.**

" **No, I'm fine."**

"We really need to fix your definition of fine Toni," Bruce scolded.

All he got was an eye roll.

" **Did you get me one of those?" Obadiah asked as Toni is handed another cheeseburger.**

" **Uh… no, there's only one left."**

 **Toni was greeted by applause as she entered the conference room.**

" **Miss Potts," a man in a suit said to Pepper as Toni walked to the stage.**

"Wow… You really met early then huh?" Steve asked.

"Yeah…" Toni countered with a rare, genuine smile on her face.

Steve felt a surge of jealousy go through him before his reasoning mind straightened him out. Coulson has his Cellist.

" **Can I speak to you for a moment?" Coulson asked.**

 **Pepper looked startled. "I-I'm not part of the…the press conference. But it's about to begin right now."**

 **Coulson looked amused. "I'm not a reporter. I'm Agent Phil Coulson from the Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division."**

 **It was Peppers turn to be amused. "That's quite a mouthful."**

" **I know we're working on it."**

" **Um… We've been approached already by the DOD, the FBI, the CIA, uh-"**

" **We're a separate division with a more specific focus."**

"They're all crap if you ask me… no offence Clint and Natashalie..." Toni snapped, her voice softening toward the end.

"None taken," Nat chuckled. Clint just looked put out.

" **We need to debrief Miss Stark about the circumstances of her escape."**

" **I'll put something in the book shall I?"**

" **Thank you," Coulson replied before he stepped away to watch the conference.**

" **Uh…" Obadiah started.**

" **Hey, would it be alright if everyone sat down?" Toni, who was sitting in front of the lectern holding a burger, inquired.**

" **Everybody just sit down. That way you can see me and I can… Let's just make this less formal."**

" **What's up with the love-in?" Rhodey asked Pepper.**

" **Don't look at me; I don't know what she's up to."**

" **Good to see you," Toni said to Obadiah.**

" **Good to see you too."**

 **Toni looked towards the reporters. "I never got to say goodbye to my father. There are questions I would have asked him. I would've asked him how he felt about what his company did. If he was conflicted. If he ever had doubts. Or maybe he was every inch the man we all remember from the news reels."**

Steve felt confused. Why wasn't Toni talking about the nice, incredible man he met?

" **I saw young Americans killed… by the very weapons I created to defend them and protect them… And I saw that I... had become part of a system that was comfortable with zero accountability."**

 **Murmurs shot through the crowd.**

" **Ms. Stark."**

" **Hey Ben!"**

" **What happened over there?"**

" **... I had my eyes opened. I came to realize that I have more to offer this world than just making things that blow up." Toni started to get up and stand behind the lectern. "That is why… Effective immediately, I am shutting down the weapons manufacturing division of Stark International until such a time as I can decide what the future of the company will be. What direction I should take, one that I'm comfortable with." This caused uproar. The reporters were going off the roof about Toni's last statement and everything was very hard to hear. Obadiah tried to fix what Toni had said by countering it with jokes.**

" **I think we're going to be selling a lot of newspapers! Uh... the thing that we should take away from this is that Toni's back! And she's healthier than ever! We're going to have a little internal discussion, and we'll get back to you with the follow up."**

"Well… that was…" Clint muttered.

"Awkward and annoying?" Toni offered up.

"Not so much as annoying, ju-"

"No, it was annoying. Obadiah was trying to save his own skin," Nat interrupted.

 **The scene panned out to show a large white building.**

"Is that the factory?" Clint asked.

"Yeah," Toni replied.

" **Where is she?" Obadiah growled at Happy.**

" **Inside," he drawled.**

 **Obadiah calmed himself down before he went inside with Tony.**

" **Well that went well," he joked, holding his cigar in his hand.**

" **Did I just paint a target on the back of my head?" Toni asked.**

" **Your head? What about my head?" he asked putting his hands on Toni's shoulders.**

Toni shuddered, remembering the feeling. Steve, feeling the shudder, tightened his arm around her shoulders that he had unconsciously kept there.

" **What do you think the over-under on the stock drop is going to be tomorrow?" he continued.**

 **Toni groaned. "About," she blew a piece of hair out of her face, "optimistically 40 points."**

" **At minimum!"**

" **Pretty much."**

 **Obadiah crosses his arms and glared at Toni.**

" **Tony… Ugh, we're a weapons manufacturer."**

" **Obie, I don't want a body count to be our only legacy."**

 **Obadiah's gaze softened at the nickname, but hardened again.**

" **That's what we do. We're iron mongers! We make weapons!"**

" **It's my name on the side of the building," Toni said stubbornly.**

" **Our work keeps the world from falling into chaos!"**

" **Not based on what I saw," she said forcefully. "We're not doing a good enough, we could do better… No, we're GOING to do better."**

" **Like what? You want us to make baby bottles?"**

"…" **Toni hesitated, "I want us to… To take another look into arc reactor technology."**

" **Come on! Be realistic. The arc reactor? That's a publicity stunt! We… We built that thing to shut the hippies up!"**

" **It works," Toni growled out.**

"I sure hope it does!" Nat exclaimed.

"Don't worry, I'm not dyi-" Toni comforted.

"Anymore, Miss." JARVIS interrupted amusement in his voice.

"What do you mean anymore?!" Steve yelled his eyes wide with fright.

"Just… Ugh, thanks a lot JARVIS," She turned to Steve. "There were some complications with the Arc Reactor but I'm fine now. Don't fret; you're beloved advisor isn't dying!"

The team stared in disbelief that they could not see each other's affection.

" **Yeah. As a science project," Obadiah deadpanned. "The arc reactor was cost effective. We knew that before we built it. Arc reactor technology, that's a dead end right?"**

" **Maybe," Toni muttered, not wanting to budge with her secret.**

" **Am I right? We haven't had a breakthrough in what? Thirty year?"**

" **That's what they say," Toni murmured sarcastically, annoyed at the questioning.**

 **Toni stared at Obadiah, who was trying to hide his curiosity to see the arc reactor in Toni's chest, but kept glancing at the slight glow situated between her breasts.**

"… **Could you have a lousier poker face? Just tell me, who told you?"**

" **Never mind who told me, show me."**

"He basically just asked to see your chest," Clint pointed out.

" **It's Rhodey or Pepper," Toni stated, looking more pissed by the minute.**

" **I want to see it."**

" **Okay, Rhodey then."**

 **Toni looked around the room, and hesitantly brought her hands up to unbutton her shirt. She only opened a few buttons, but it was enough the show the small circle of blue light encased in her chest.**

All the men in the room blushed and looked away from the screen.

"Seriously guys, you see Nat's cleavage all the time," Tony pointed out.

"That doesn't mean we directly look at it. Yours is just displayed on the screen. Especially now that JARVIS has paused the movie," Clint told her.

Tony looked toward the screen and chuckled at the image. Her whole torso was splashed across the screen like it was on magazine fronts when she was in college.

"It's like College all over again," she voiced. The men blushed again while she and Nat laughed at their embarrassment.

" **It works." Toni repeated slowly.**

" **Look Toni, we're a team. Do you understand? There's nothing we can't do if we stick together, like your father and I."**

" **Sorry I didn't give you a heads up," she said gruffly while buttoning up her shirt again, "But if I had…"**

" **Toni, no more of this 'Ready, Aim, Fire' business. You understand me?"**

 **Toni glared at him. "That was Dad's line."**

 **Obadiah just sighed. "You've got to let me handle this. We're going to have to play a whole different kind of ball now. We're going to have to take a lot of heat… I want you to promise me that you're going to lay low now."**

Nat snorted. "Please, this is Toni we're talking about."

The others laughed.

"Hey!"

 **The scene changed to the living room in the mansion where Pepper was watching a TV show, scowling at the TV.**

"Ugh, here we go. The sexism at full speed," Toni exclaimed.

" **STARK INDUSTRIES! I've got on recommendations! Ready? Ready? SELL, SELL, SELL!"**

Nat wrinkled her nose in distaste at the backing tracks that were being used.

" **Abandon ship! Does the Hindenburg ring any bells?! Let me show you the new Stark Industries business plane!" The obnoxious presenter on the TV hit a mug with a baseball bat. "Look! That's a weapons company that doesn't. Make. Weapons! It was bad enough with a woman running it, now they're stopping production of the things they're there for selling!"**

 **Pepper glared at the TV. A loud ring was suddenly heard throughout the room and Pepper answered to phone to Toni.**

" **Pepper how big are your hands?" Toni asked before Pepper could start with the pleasantries.**

"… **What?"**

" **How big are your hands?" Toni asked impatiently.**

" **I don't understand. Why…?"**

" **Get down here. I need you." Toni coughed over the com, closing the line before Pepper could answer. Pepper confusedly made her way down the stairs and into the lab typing in the code needed to get in. She gasped at the sight of Tony lying on a chair hooked up to several machines and a heart monitor.**

"Toni, that was very dangerous," Bruce scolded.

" **Come on. Let me see them. Show me your hands."**

" **Oh. They are small." She chuckled but winced when the movement hurt her chest. "Very petite indeed… I just need you help for a sec…"**

" **Oh my God!" she gasped at the sight of the arc reactor. "Is that the thing keeping you alive?"**

" **It was, now it is an antique."**

 **Toni reached over to a small tray and grasped a newer, sleeker arc reactor.**

" **This is what will be keeping me alive for the foreseeable future. I'm swapping it up for an upgraded unit, and I ran into a little speed bump…" she trailed off.**

" **Speed bump? What does that mean?!" Pepper asked frantically.**

"Yes Toni," Steve started in a strained voice, "what does a little speed bump mean?"

"My hands were at the wrong angle."

" **It's nothing. It's just a little snag… There's an exposed wire under this device… And it's contacting the socket wall and causing a little bit of a short." Toni grunted as she pulled out the old reactor, a splash of pain passing through her eyes. The heart monitor jumped in sync with Toni as she yanked the wires out of her body.**

"Oh that's gross!" Clint exclaimed.

"Thanks Clint thanks!" Toni laughed.

"No, I didn't mean tha-"

"It's cool, it was really gross." She looked thoughtful, "All those wires having to pass through the inorganic plasma discharge from the reactor, which I could feel. Then there was the feeling that I knew the shrapnel for getting closer to my hea-"

"I do NOT want to know that!"

"But Clinty, who not?" she fluttered her eyelashes at him.

Clint just glared at her.

" **It's fine!" Toni exclaimed before Pepper could panic.**

" **What do you want me to do?!"**

" **Put that on the table over there," she commanded, passing Pepper the old reactor.**

" **Now, I want you to reach in and you're just going to gently lift the wire out."**

 **Pepper slowly inched her hand toward Toni's chest.**

" **Is it safe?"**

" **Yeah, it should be fine. It's like Operation, you don't let it touch the socket wall or it will go 'beep'!"**

" **What do you mean 'Operation'?!"**

" **It's just a game, never mind."**

" **Gently lift the wire. Okay? Great."**

 **Pepper inched her hand into Toni's chest hesitantly but yanked her arm back at the last second.**

" **You know, I don't think I'm qualified to do this."**

" **No- you're fine. You're the most capable, qualified, trustworthy person I've ever met. You're going to do great… Is it too much to ask cos' I'm kinda…"**

" **Okay, okay," Pepper relented.**

" **I really need your help here," Toni continued.**

" **Okay… Oh, there's pus!"**

The team watched with uneasy stomachs as Peppers hand disappeared into Toni's chest.

" **It's not pus. It's an organic plasma discharge from the device not from my body."**

"Really Tony? Quoting yourself?" Nat asked.

"Someone had to do it." Tony shrugged.

" **It smells!"**

" **Yeah, I gathered that. There copper wire. You got it?"**

" **Okay, I got it! I got!" Pepper claimed hysterically.**

" **Okay, you got it? Now, don't let it touch the sides when you coming OUT!" she shouted in pain as he heart monitor pulsed rapidly with the shock.**

" **I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Pepper cried out, close to tears.**

" **That's what I was trying to tell you before… okay, now make sure that when you pull it out, you don-" Toni's back jerked off the table as the copper wire came out as well as a circular disc. The monitor started to flash red.**

"Woah, woah, woah! Steve you're going to rip my very new, very expensive couch with the way you're holding it!" Toni cried out.

Steve yanked his arm way from the arm rest while muttering an apology.

" **There's a magnet at the end of it! That was it. You just pulled it out." Toni deadpanned.**

" **Oh God!"**

 **Okay," Toni said with a laugh, "I was not expecting tha- Don't put it back in! Don't put it back in!"**

" **Okay what do I do? What's wrong?"**

" **Nothing, I'm just going into cardiac arrest cause' you yanked it out like a trout…"**

" **What?! You said it was safe!"**

" **We got to hurry. Take this, take this." She carefully handed Pepper the new reactor.**

" **You got to switch it out really quick."**

" **Okay, okay…Toni? It's going to be okay. I'm going to make this okay…"**

 **Toni stared at her in disbelief before she shook her head and continued to give her instructions. "Okay, you're going to attach that to the base plate. Make sure you-"**

 **Toni jumped as the reactor was attached and shouted in pain, alerting the team how much pain she was actually in.**

"… **Was that so hard? That was fun right?" Toni asked breathing heavily and giving breathy spouts of laughter.**

" **Here, I got it. I got it," Pepper said, helping Toni sit up. Toni looked at the reactor and tapped it twice.**

" **Nice!" she nodded her head in approval.**

" **Are you okay?" Pepper asked, eyeing her suspiciously.**

" **Yeah, I feel great," she smirked, "The question it, are you okay?"**

" **Don't ever, ever, ever, ever ask me to do anything like that ever again." Pepper tried to scold, but reality caught up with her and she gave and unsteady laugh.**

" **I don't have anyone but you. Anyway…" Toni looked at the old reactor and Pepper followed her gaze.**

The teams gaze softened at Toni's statement.

" **What do you want me to do with this?" Pepper asked Toni.**

 **Tony shrugged as she pulled on her shirt. "That? Destroy it."**

" **You don't want to keep it?"**

" **Pepper, I've been called many things, 'nostalgic' is not one of them."**

 **Pepper sighed. "Will that be all Miss Stark?"**

" **That will be all Miss Potts."**

 **Pepper turned and walked out with her heels clicking on the concrete floor.**

 **Tony looked behind her at her desk with a frown.**

" **Hey, Butterfingers, come here." The robot that was called came to her, its claw twisting and turning in curiosity.**

" **What's all this stuff doing on my desk? That's my phone, that's a picture of me and my Dad. Right there- in the garbage, all of my stuff."**

 **The Robot did as it was told and Toni turned away from the sight of the photo in the trash can.**

"…"

"Can somebody please tell me why Toni is on TV?"

Everybody turned to the voice at the door.


	7. Chapter 7: Hurtful Words and Visitors

Chapter 7: Hurtful Words and Visitors.

"Aunt Peggy?!" Toni leapt to her feet.

"Hi Toni," Peggy smiled warmly back from her wheel chair.

"What are you doing here? I wasn't expecting you for another week!"

"Toni, settle down," Pepper reprimanded from behind Peggy's wheelchair, nursing her aching head from the meeting.

"Peggy…?" Steve murmured dumbfounded from where he was still seated on the couch.

"Oh, guys, this is my Godmother Peggy. Peggy, this is the team," Toni vaguely introduced.

"Really Toni?" Pepper scowled. "Not even their names?"

"Well, she knows Nat and I've talked about Bruce since I was a teenager so…" she trailed off.

Why…? Why did you talk about me?" Bruce asked Toni, blushing.

"You were like, my biggest idol." He looked disbelieving. "Seriously, I was full fangirl for you."

Pepper sighed and wheeled Peggy into the room further.

"Peggy, this is Bruce, Thor Clint and-"

"Steve?" Peggy breathed out, bewildered.

"Hi Peggy," Steve answered with an awkward wave.

"You guys know each other?" Toni asked.

Peggy smirked slightly, "Yes, Steve had quite the crush on me during WWII."

Steve blushed.

Toni however, looked horrified.

"You have a crush on my Godmother?!"

Everyone's head swiveled around to look at Toni.

"What do you mean 'have'?' Pepper asked tentatively.

"Feelings don't go away just because you're a Popsicle for 80 years."

Peggy started to feel guilty, Toni looked hurt… But mostly just nauseous.

"I don't have a crush on her Toni. It was just a slight fancy… No offence Peggy," Steve countered.

"None taken," Peggy shook her head.

There was a sudden awkward silence.

"So is anyone going to answer my question?" Peggy asked hesitantly after an awkward silence.

"We're not entirely sure," Nat said softly.

"We just know that the disc appeared on the table, like a weird plot twist of some sort, and we watched it..." Clint continued.

"And we've been learning about Toni's time in Afghanistan," Bruce finished.

Pepper look like she was going to be sick. She went pale at the mention of Afghanistan and the team could see her legs shaking. Peggy didn't look much better.

"And just exactly where are we up to?" Pepper asked shakily.

"Well…" Bruce then proceeded to tell them all that had happened.

"Okay… Peggy I don't think you'll be okay to watch this," Toni said forcefully.

"I'll be fine," Peggy waved her hand.

"You're almost 80 years old!" Toni stressed.

"There are 80 year olds skydiving my dear, I don't think this will harm me too much," Peggy chuckled.

"I don't know…" Toni trailed off anxiously.

"Toni just… Just let her watch this. She doesn't know any of it," Pepper said softly.

"I know but…"

"Do they know about the thing?" Pepper inclined her head toward the team.

"Hey, we're just he- Tasha! That hurt!" Clint said, annoyed.

"No, they'll find out soon though."

"Ok. Should I get some earplugs for when they do?"

"No… Maybe Peggy though."

"I'm good," Peggy interrupted. Toni huffed and sat back down.

Pepper wheeled Peggy's chair between the two couches. Clint, Nat and Bruce bunched up so Pepper could sit down.

JARVIS played the movie.

 **The scene cut to an airfield with Rhodey talking to a group of trainees.**

" **The future of air combat is it manned or unmanned?" he asked rhetorically. "I'll tell you, in my experience, no unmanned aerial vehicle will ever trump a pilot's instinct, his insight, that ability to look into a situation beyond the obvious and discern its outcome, or a pilot's judgment."**

" **Colonel?" Toni interrupted, "why not a pilot without the plane?"**

"That is the biggest hint I have ever heard. Toni, you could have been less obvious," Pepper deadpanned.

" **Look who fell out of the sky. Miss Tony Stark," Rhodey said casually.**

" **Hello miss," one of the trainees said politely as Toni shook their hand.**

" **Speaking of man or unmanned, "she started jokingly, "you have** _ **got**_ **to get him to tell you about the time he guessed wrong at Spring Break. Just remember that, Spring Break, 1987. That lovely lady you woke up with, what was his name?"**

" **Don't do that" Rhodey said sternly shaking his head as the trainees laughed.**

" **Was it Ivan?"**

" **Don't do that," he repeated, "they'll believe that, don't do that."**

 **The humor drained from Toni's face as the trainees kept laughing.**

" **Pleasure meeting you," Toni nodded to the trainees as Rhodey dismissed them.**

"Toni, why would you do that?" Peggy asked sternly.

"It was funny" Toni chuckled in response.

"That might have ruined his reputation if they told other people."

"They wouldn't have," Toni reassured.

"And how are you so sure?" Peggy glared.

"Because I saw the group when I was leaving and threatened to give bad reviews of them if they spread that," Toni answered almost sheepishly, scratching the back of her neck.

"Toni," Peggy sounded tired, her head hitting the back of the couch with a groan, "you can't threaten someone just because they might spread a rumor."

"Yes I can."

"No, you can't."

"If I don't do it again will you drop it?"

"Yes."

"Okay, I won't threaten anyone who tries to spread a rumor in the near future."

Peggy nodded, "Good."

" **I'm surprised," Rhodey confessed.**

 **Toni looked put out. "…Why?"**

" **I swear I didn't expect to see you walking around so soon."**

" **Well… I'm doing a little better than walking," Toni stated, brushing dust off her shoulder in a show of nervousness.**

 **Rhodey didn't seem to believe her. "Really?"**

"… **Rhodey I'm working on something really big… I came to talk to you," she took a deep breath, "I want you to be a part of it."**

 **Rhodey chuckled in what seemed like relief, "You're about to make a whole lot of people around her real happy, cos' that little stunt at the press conference," he chuckled again, "that was a doozy."**

"That doesn't seem like something Colonel Rhodes would say. Are you sure this is right, dear?" Peggy inquired with slight confusion.

"He's not like this. But it had been only a few days after the press conference that I went to see him and the military was still _really_ pissed that I stopped making weapons and he was just taking his frustration out on me. I mean" Toni stated with a chuckle, nodding her head at Steve with a smirk on her lips , "we all know things can be said during times of frustration," she elbowed Steve in the ribs as a show that she was only joking, though Steve still looked guilty. Bruce stifled his laughter, yeah; he knew first hand that hurtful things could be said in times of frustration.

 **Toni looked hurt for a mere second, before her nervousness resurfaced. "Mhm… This… Is not for the military… I'm not… It's different."**

 **Rhodey looked at Toni as though she'd grown a second head, "What? You a humanitarian now?"**

" **I need you to listen to me-"**

" **No. What you need, is time to get your mind right."**

'That stupid, idiot,' Steve thought. 'You don't tell someone that.'

 **Toni gave a watery smile.**

" **I'm serious," Rhodey countered.**

" **Okay," Toni answered in a hurt whisper.**

 **Rhodey shook his head at her as he turned to walk away. The look he gave her was one an adult gave an immature child. "It was nice seeing you Toni."**

 **The genius looked gave a betrayed look to Rhodey's back and swallowed past the lump in her throat. "Thanks Rhodey."**

"Next time I see that boy he is going to get a lecture so hard that his _ear will bleed,"_ Peggy stated in a harsh grumble.

"I really don't think that's necessary Aunt Peggy," Toni retorted forcefully.

"I don't know Toni, he basically just told you that you were crazy," Bruce countered with a carefree shrug of his shoulders, though they were obviously tense.

"Yeah, but he knows now."

"Knows what?" Clint, the ever so fast one, asked.

"The… The thing," Pepper answered before Toni could open her mouth. Toni gave her a puzzled look. The thing? She couldn't have come up with anything better than that?

"The… Thing?" Steve confusedly asked.

"Yes. The. Thing." Pepper gave him a death glare that told him not to question her answer.

"… I'm still going to whoop his ass," Peggy added as an afterthought.

"You know what, fine. Whoop his ass and put your hip out again. But don't ask me for any help," Toni huffed. She couldn't understand why Peggy was so unyielding with her opinion of needing to kick Rhodey's butt. Did they not see how frustrated and tense he looked throughout the whole scene? He obviously didn't mean what he said. Toni really didn't understand the normal human brain. She was getting more and more like Sherlock Holmes every day!

Everyone in the room just gave her a flat look that had her slouching in her seat.

 **In Toni's Malibu home, the genius' hands glided across a holographic keyboard as it lit up with glowing blue symbols.**

" **Jarvis you up?"**

" **For you Miss, always."**

 **Toni grabbed what looked like a pen from a pen holder. "I'd like to open a new project file. Index as Mark II."**

 **It was made clear that what she'd grabbed a hold of was not a pen as she pointed it at the screen, clicked on a file with the suit from Afghanistan on it and dragged it across to the glowing work station across from her.**

" **Shall I store this on the Stark Industries central database?"**

Steve watched mesmerized as Toni let go of the file she was holding which then proceeded to enlarge and rotate while emitting a lime green glow.

" **No I don't know who to trust at the moment. Until further notice why don't we just keep everything on my private survey?"**

" **Working on a secret project are we Miss?"**

 **Toni didn't answer as she began fiddling with the hologram on the table she'd come to stand in front of. She lifted its head and torso off and dragged it down to the holographic trash can.**

" **I don't want this ending up in the wrong hands," she answered eventually. She continued to spin the hologram and throw away unwanted parts till she spoke again.**

" **Maybe it can actually do some good," she muttered, spinning the now almost bare hologram around.**

"Toni I never knew you could do that," Peggy said, slightly astonished at the sheer genius of her goddaughter.

"… Why does everyone always seem so surprised when I do something smart?" Toni asked, bewildered.

"It's because no matter your real age, you're a five year old at heart," Natasha stated bluntly, patting Toni's knee in sympathy.

Toni didn't even look put out, she just looked proud.

 **The scene cut to a group of men working in harsh, desert conditions, obviously searching for something. Toni could practically taste the sand and feel the dust in her eyes again. Parts of something were being carried to a truck until the scene cut to somebody digging up what looked to be a mask. The masked and goggled man stood up in triumph and shouted in a foreign language while holding up a mask. Toni's mask to be precise.**

"They were looking for your suit. Why?" Steve asked.

"To rebuild it I guess. That's the only logical reason. I'm sure they didn't go looking for spare parts," Toni answered with a shrug.

The leader shouted at the man in the mask in a foreign language, though it was clear that it was a command. The mask was brought to the leader who stared at it with hatred. It was clear that the complications had only just begun.


End file.
